Summer is a time of unbridled optimism for just about every NHL fanbase.

The off-season is a blank slate upon which all kinds of hopes and dreams can be projected. No rationalization seems too far fetched absent the cold, hard reality of actual game play and results. That new reclamation project your team signed? That expensive player who underperformed last year? The dark horse prospect with a long development curve? It’s easy to find reasons why they are going to rebound, find their footing, or surprise everyone. And easy to forget why they failed to impress previously.

In that vein, some pockets of Flames fans are trying to find the silver lining to Troy Brouwer’s disastrous first season in Calgary. Signed to a four year, $18 million contract last summer, Brouwer is Calgary’s third highest paid forward behind Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan, but finished 12th in team scoring (and near dead last by almost any advanced metric you care to...